2019 Affirmation International Conference

Provo, UT

Registration for this event has closed.

Being your authentic self can be a revolutionary act. Whether it’s being open with your sexual orientation, expressing your gender identity, or practicing your faith; just being you can be challenging. At this year’s Affirmation International Conference, we want to celebrate you being authentically you while exploring love, hope, healing, and connection. Join LGTBQ Mormons, their family members, and their friends from around the world and from across the spectrums of sexual orientation, gender identity, faith, and relationship with the Church in sharing and growing from our experiences.

Registration

Take advantage of early bird rates for conference tickets through Saturday, May 18. You can save at least $20 per person by registering by May 18 when conference tickets are $70 for individuals, $130 for couples, and $190 for families. After May 18, conference tickets are $90 for individuals, $170 for couples, and $250 for families. Register now.

Scholarships

As we’ve done in previous years, scholarships are available to this year’s conference. To apply for a scholarship, complete the conference registration making sure to complete the scholarship application. Applications for scholarships will be considered for approval by the scholarship committee. All conference attendees receiving a scholarship will be expected to volunteer during portions of the conference. The deadline to apply for a scholarship is Saturday, May 18. Late applications will not be accepted.Apply for a scholarship now.

Location, Transportation, and Parking

The Affirmation International Conference returns this year to Provo, Utah, and will be hosted at the Utah Valley Convention Center, located just 45 minutes south of Salt Lake City in the historic Downtown Provo. Conference attendees coming through Salt Lake International Airport can travel by car, train, and bus from the airport to the convention center. There are several parking locations to choose from. Get more information on transportation and parking.

Speakers / Presenters / Performers

Laurie Lee Hall

Senior Vice President of Affirmation

Laurie Lee Hall is the Senior Vice President of Affirmation. Not only does she create beautiful spaces within Affirmation, as a practicing architect she has created many of the beautiful and iconic spaces of the LDS Church.

Singer/Songwriter Mindy Gledhill powerfully captured the essence of Laurie Lee in one of her Facebook posts:

“Two of the most prized buildings in my city (the new MTC addition and the rebuilt Provo City Center Temple) should remind our community daily, that the contributions of transgender citizens bless us all.

Laurie Lee Hall, Chief architect of those buildings (and many other LDS temples) is a transgender woman who leads with graciousness and love. She is one example of many amazing transgender people whose contributions make our state a better place.

Let’s think about that when we send our kids off to the MTC on missions (where transgender kids are barred from serving), or see them get married in the temple (where trans people are not even allowed to enter, let alone get married).”

This will be a powerful evening where Laurie Lee will weave together her remarkable work of church building projects with life lessons of communication, grieving, and mindfulness. Most importantly we will leave the evening more empowered as we navigate the challenges and triumphs of living authentically.

Nathan Kitchen

Affirmation President

Elected as Affirmation President in 2018, Nathan Kitchen (he/him/his) grew up in Orem, Utah. When he was 15, he moved to Illinois and finished high school. He served a two-year mission in Alabama, where on a lonely Tuscaloosa country road, he had a tooth knocked out during a head-on collision. The dentist who saved his tooth was so cool that Nathan decided right then and there to become one himself. He received his BS from BYU Provo and a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from Southern Illinois University. After a residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, he moved to Arizona and opened his private practice in Mesa. Nathan is the proud father of five remarkable children who are the pride and joy of his life.

Gregory Prince

Author and Historian

Gregory A Prince holds both a doctorate degree in dentistry (DDS) and a Ph.D. in pathology. After graduating as valedictorian from Dixie College (St. George, Utah), he served a two-year mission in Brazil for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Upon returning to the United States in 1969, Prince attended graduate school at the University of California, Los Angeles, receiving a D.D.S. (valedictorian) in 1973 and a Ph.D in pathology in 1975. In 1975 he and his wife, JaLynn Rasmussen, moved to Washington D.C., for a post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. He is the author of dozens of articles and three books including the award-winning volumes David O McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism (coauthored with WM Robert Wright) and Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History. Both books have won the prestigious Evans Biography award. In 2008, Prince and his wife established the Madison House Autism Foundation, named after their youngest son who is autistic, for the purpose of addressing the perplexing issues facing adults with autism, along with those facing family members, caregivers, and society at large.

Prince serves on the boards of several non-profit institutions including the National Advisory Council, Dixie State University; the National Advisory Board, J. W. Marriott Library, University of Utah; the National Presidential Advisory Board, Utah Valley University; the Dean’s Advisory Council, University of Utah School of Dentistry; and the Board of Governors, Wesley Theological Seminary.

Charlie Bird

BYU Cosmo the Cougar, 2016-2018

Charlie Bird was Cosmo the Cougar at Brigham Young University from 2016-2018. He received national acclaim for his multiple dance performances with the BYU Cougarettes. As Cosmo, he performed on stages across the country, including the ESPN College Football Awards and America’s Got Talent. The year 2017 was dubbed “Year of the Mascot” by NBC Sports in honor of Cosmo’s character and performance. Charlie was born and raised in Southwest Missouri, and served a 2-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Redlands, California. He graduated from BYU in 2018 with degrees in Global Supply Chain Management and Spanish Studies. Charlie is an active LBGTQ advocate and is involved with multiple nonprofit LGBTQ organizations across Utah. He currently resides in New York City where he works in Spanish translation, and logistics consulting.

Stacey Harkey

Actor/Writer Previously on Studio C

Stacey was born and raised in the bold country of Texas. After mastering the English language he immigrated to Utah to attend Brigham Young University, earn a bachelors degree in Public Relations and start working as an actor/writer for the sketch comedy show, Studio C. He recently left Studio C and started a family friendly media network with his best friends. By the way, he just announced to the world in December 2018 that he’s gay and he won’t stop talking about it.

Rebecca Solen

Army Veteran, Politician, Advocate

Rebecca Solen is a dreamer and an idealist in a world that consistently demands pessimism. Her previous efforts to contribute to the good of the world have led her to serve a mission in Germany, serve in the Army for eight years, and a run for Congress in 2016. After coming out as transgender, she has spent considerable time and effort advocating for the LGBTQ community on various TV, radio, print, and internet outlets. Rebecca earned a bachelor’s degree in information systems from the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, a master’s degree in international relations from Troy University, and is a certified digital forensic expert. Rebecca and Melissa Solen have been happily married for 19 years, have four children, and reside in Pullman, Washington.

Jairo Fernando González Díaz

Vice President of Affirmation

The family of Jairo Fernando González Díaz was among the first LDS converts in Colombia, hence the unusual trajectory of an active Mormon since boyhood in a conservative and Catholic society where Mormonism was barely known. The mission he served in different cities of Colombia, accentuated his leadership skills and his religious convictions.

His professional training included a professional degree from the Colombian Polytechnic, as well as the development of his expertise as an auditor in renowned law firms such as Price Waterhouse Coopers and Nexia International. In the latter, his performance included the assembly of a conceptual technical structure that is still in use today. In more recent times, he established himself as a Founding Partner of Infinity, an accounting and consulting firm that develops its activities in important companies in western Colombia and Ecuador.

Conference Schedule

We’re working to finalize the schedule for the conference and will post updates as they are available. Conference attendees will also have access to the conference schedule using the Whova app on their Apple and Android devices.

Vendors

Silent Art Auction

Choir Practice

Youth Track

5:00 PM to 11:30 PM

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference. They’ll engage in discussions and hear from speakers that are age appropriate, put on a talent show for their peers, complete a service project, and more! The youth also rehearse to perform a musical number at one of the plenary sessions of the conference. We’re excited to continue to provide this safe and affirming environment for youth attending the International Conference.

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference.

First Timers Meeting

Friday Plenary

Location: Ballrooms A/B

Gregory Prince

Author and Historian

Gregory A Prince holds both a doctorate degree in dentistry (DDS) and a Ph.D. in pathology. After graduating as valedictorian from Dixie College (St. George, Utah), he served a two-year mission in Brazil for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Upon returning to the United States in 1969, Prince attended graduate school at the University of California, Los Angeles, receiving a D.D.S. (valedictorian) in 1973 and a Ph.D in pathology in 1975. In 1975 he and his wife, JaLynn Rasmussen, moved to Washington D.C., for a post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. He is the author of dozens of articles and three books including the award-winning volumes David O McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism (coauthored with WM Robert Wright) and Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History. Both books have won the prestigious Evans Biography award. In 2008, Prince and his wife established the Madison House Autism Foundation, named after their youngest son who is autistic, for the purpose of addressing the perplexing issues facing adults with autism, along with those facing family members, caregivers, and society at large.

Prince serves on the boards of several non-profit institutions including the National Advisory Council, Dixie State University; the National Advisory Board, J. W. Marriott Library, University of Utah; the National Presidential Advisory Board, Utah Valley University; the Dean’s Advisory Council, University of Utah School of Dentistry; and the Board of Governors, Wesley Theological Seminary.

Rebecca Solen

Army Veteran, Politician, Advocate

Rebecca Solen is a dreamer and an idealist in a world that consistently demands pessimism. Her previous efforts to contribute to the good of the world have led her to serve a mission in Germany, serve in the Army for eight years, and a run for Congress in 2016. After coming out as transgender, she has spent considerable time and effort advocating for the LGBTQ community on various TV, radio, print, and internet outlets. Rebecca earned a bachelor’s degree in information systems from the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, a master’s degree in international relations from Troy University, and is a certified digital forensic expert. Rebecca and Melissa Solen have been happily married for 19 years, have four children, and reside in Pullman, Washington.

Film Viewing – Jane and Emma

8:30 PM to 11:30 PM, Ballrooms A/B

Join us for a special screening of Jane and Emma, a film of friendship between Emma Smith and Jane Manning James, a free black woman who walked 800 miles to join the early saints in Nauvoo. Director, Chantelle Squires, will introduce the film and afterward will be joined by Melissa Leilani Larsen (Writer) and Jenn Lee Smith (Producer) for a Q&A. Watch preview on YouTube.

Location: Ballrooms A/B

8:30 PM11:30 PM

Mingling

Youth Track

7:30 AM to 12:30 AM

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference. They’ll engage in discussions and hear from speakers that are age appropriate, put on a talent show for their peers, complete a service project, and more! The youth also rehearse to perform a musical number at one of the plenary sessions of the conference. We’re excited to continue to provide this safe and affirming environment for youth attending the International Conference.

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference.

Silent Art Auction

Welcome / Kickoff

Church Leaders: Ministering to and with the LGBTQ Community

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Ballroom B

This session is an effort to follow Elder Ballard’s counsel to “listen to and understand what our LGBT brothers and sisters are feeling and experiencing. Certainly, we must do better than we have done in the past so that all members feel they have a spiritual home where their brothers and sisters love them and where they have a place to worship and serve the Lord.” Come hear the stories of two LGBT Mormons, the mother of a gay son, and church leaders made sure everyone had a place where they felt welcome.

Location: Ballroom B

Tom Christofferson

Author

Tom Christofferson is the author of That We May Be One: A Gay Mormon’s Perspective of Faith and Family, published by Deseret Book. His career in global investment management and asset services included long-term assignments in Europe and Asia. He is an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in his Mesa, Arizona ward and stake.

Parents and Allies: Sharing Our Stories and Getting to Know You

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Ballroom A

Are you the mother, father, bishop, friend, neighbor, church member, sibling, relative, or advocate of an LGBTQ+ individual? LGBTQ+ people are our mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, co-workers, and friends. You have the opportunity to be an ally and a friend at home, school, church, and work. Allies are some of the most effective and powerful voices of the LGBTQ+ movement. In this session, we will network together to share ideas and ways to offer support through friendship, parties, activities, events, firesides, panel discussions and more! We will share personal success stories and the open format will allow you to ask questions, receive feedback, and understand how to best help those you love!

Crossroads

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Cascade C

A discussion group for queer folks between the ages of 18-25 focusing on what it’s like to be a queer person in your late teens and early twenties. Potential topics of conversation will include coming out, dating, creating boundaries with friends and family, self-acceptance, and more.

Journeys

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Cascade A

Affirmation Journeys is a group orientated toward LGBTQIA folks, their families, and allies who are transitioning out of Mormon orthodoxy, as well as former Mormons. One reason the transition to a new paradigm is difficult is because we are leaving both positive and negative aspects of our former faith. How do we hold on to the positive aspects? How do we let go of bitterness over the negative?

Prepare

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Cascade B

Affirmation’s Prepare group is a community of support for LGBTQ Latter-day Saints who are believing and/or active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or desiring to explore activity in the Church. We share stories and testimonies, and learn from, pray for one another and support one another in a path that can be very challenging. All are welcome regardless of relationship, gender identity or church membership status.

Location: Cascade BFacilitator: John Gustav-Wrathall

LGBTQ Latter-day Saints who are believing and/or active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or desiring to explore activity in the Church.

Mixed Orientation Families (MOFIA)

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Cascade D

MOFIA (Mixed Orientation Families In Affirmation) is a support community for individuals and families impacted by mixed-orientation marriage. This year’s meeting will focus on helping our kids adjust to changing dynamics in Mixed Orientation families. Mixed orientation parents often divorce and re-partner when the LGBTQ spouse comes out, and even if families remain intact, there are usually changes in family culture and beliefs. Laura Skaggs Dulin, a LCSW with vast experience in counseling youth, will facilitate a panel discussion of LGBTQ and Straight spouses that will share insights from their lived experience in parenting their kids through transitions. There will be also Q&A group discussion, intended to help audience members learn ways to bring healing and resilience to their children.

Women

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Battle Creek

This group is intended to be a space for LGTQIA+ Women to come together in fellowship and strengthen our voices. There is immeasurable value in meeting with others who have our shared religious background and orientation, as we can validate each other’s past experiences and learn from each other’s current paths. How do we navigate a heteronormative culture that generalizes our community as a group of gay cis men? How do we foster communities to feel heard and seen, inside or outside of the church? No matter how strong or tenuous your connection is to Mormonism, or how long you’ve been out/who you’re out to, your voice as a queer woman is critical and we look forward to celebrating it in this session.

Location: Battle Creek

Chelsea Gibbs

Educator and Film Historian

Chelsea Gibbs is an educator and film historian currently based in Los Angeles and working for a film archive. She first discovered Affirmation as part of her coming-out journey in graduate school, where it gave her a much-needed community outside of queer theory classes. She has been actively involved with the LA chapter and the organization as a whole since 2014, facilitating discussion groups for queer women at Affirmation’s annual International Conference for the past five years.

Trans/Non-Binary

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Silver Creek

Designed for non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals, this affinity group seeks to help individuals learn from each others’ experiences in these following areas: 1) Coming out to ourselves and others; 2) Managing body and gender dysphoria; 3) Finding peace and happiness on hard days; 4) Figuring out, if desired, how to navigate LDS theology beliefs in gender.

Location: Silver Creek

Bianca Cline

Cinematographer

Bianca Cline is mother to the best three kids in the world. She was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She served a mission in Spain and studied film and photography at BYU. She now works as a cinematographer shooting movies and commercials.

Men

9:30 AM to 10:45 AM, Hobble Creek

One fundamental pillar of the church is its focus on the family. How has this shaped your sense of self? Did it instill a desire to have children, and has it shaped how you view potential life partners? This session aims to discuss where our motivators around the desire for family (or lack thereof) come from; whether these desires have changed based on our relationship with the church; and how being a man has shaped expectations from ourselves and others.

Location: Hobble CreekFacilitator: Graham Gibbs

9:30 AM10:45 AM

Social Track

Location: Timpanogos Terrace

If you’re looking for a place to mingle, this area will be open throughout the conference to have a place to socialize.

Break

LBTQ+ Women and Mothers in Affirmation

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Cascade C

This group is intended to be a space for LGBTQIA+ women to come together in fellowship and strengthen our voices. How do we foster communities to feel heard and seen, inside or outside of the church? How can we become empowered by embracing an identity we have often been told to ignore or repress? Come share your experiences with your sisters.

This affinity group is for women in affirmation who identify as LGBTQ. Our group will be a safe space for all to attend and connect with one another. We respect and affirm everyone in their individual journeys, even when it looks different from our own. Come join us for great conversation, respectful dialogue, motivational talks, connection, building community, and lots and lots of laughs.

Straight Spouses

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Cascade D

Share the story of your journey. This affinity group session includes straight spouses, both men and women, who identify as straight and are currently or have been in a mixed orientation marriage. There is a great healing power in sharing our stories. Come share your story if you desire, or just listen to the stories of others.

Church Leaders: Walk a Mile in Our Shoes

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Ballroom B

This session is an effort to follow Elder Ballard’s counsel to “listen to and understand what our LGBT brothers and sisters are feeling and experiencing. Certainly, we must do better than we have done in the past so that all members feel they have a spiritual home where their brothers and sisters love them and where they have a place to worship and serve the Lord.” Come hear the stories of two LGBT Mormons, the mother of a gay son, and church leaders made sure everyone had a place where they felt welcome.

Location: Ballroom B

Ann Pack

Active, Married, Transgender Woman

Ann Pack is a transgender woman and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She is the oldest of five children and has lived in Utah her whole life. She served a full-time mission in London, England. Ann married her wife Brigit 19 years ago in the Bountiful temple and together they have a 14-year-old daughter. After 15 years of marriage as husband and wife, Ann could no longer keep the secret that she was transgender. Instead of divorcing, Ann and Brigit have chosen to stay together even though at times this choice has been extremely difficult for both of them. Ann has a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology and lives with her family in Syracuse, Utah. She currently works for Zion’s Bank as a systems administrator. Ann and Brigit regularly attend their ward meetings and they are both passionate about bringing more understanding and awareness of LGBTQ members of the church.

Parents and Allies: Happiness at the End of the Rainbow

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Ballroom A

Are you the mother, father, bishop, friend, neighbor, church member, sibling, relative, or advocate of an LGBTQ+ individual? LGBTQ+ people are our mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, co-workers, and friends. You have the opportunity to be an ally and a friend at home, school, church, and work. Allies are some of the most effective and powerful voices of the LGBTQ+ movement. In this session, we will network together to share ideas and ways to offer support through friendship, parties, activities, events, firesides, panel discussions and more! We will share personal success stories and the open format will allow you to ask questions, receive feedback, and understand how to best help those you love!

Bi / Pan / Queer+

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Cascade A

The Bi, Pan, Queer group offers those who identify as non-monosexual/non-monoromantic a place to talk about their unique experiences, discuss challenges and frustrations, and find community and support. The group is open to supportive allies, though they are respectfully invited to take a backseat as they learn and listen from the non-monosexual/non-monoromatic individuals in the session.

Asexual / Aromantic Spectrum

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Battle Creek

This affinity group is for people with identities under the asexual and aromantic umbrella. Come hang out with us to share experiences and discuss what Affirmation can do for our part of the community! People exploring or questioning their identities are welcome, but please no allies this year as we’ve had problems in the past.

Reconciling Your Faith

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Silver Creek

Join us in this safe space to both reconnect and meet new acquaintances as we delve into the intersections that have impacted our journeys as LGBTQIA folks. During our discussion and fellowship, we will provide opportunities to get to know each other’s experiences, reconcile faith by having the courage to dissect religion while also retaining spirituality, and to explore and affirm our true authentic selves.

Location: Silver Creek

Alix Chen Yee

Alix Chen Yee is native to Utah and grew up in the Salt Lake area. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a Master’s in Business Management. Her extracurricular studies have included attending the Nonprofit Academy at the University of Utah, and Legal Studies courses at Salt Lake Community College. Having worked 3 years in Higher Education and 3 years in the Utah Courts system while volunteering her time with many nonprofit organizations including Make a Wish Foundation and The Organization of Chinese Americans, she would like to focus her attention on supporting LGBTQIA+ as well as allies to navigate the current issues at hand. Although she is no longer a formal member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, she studies scriptures regularly and maintains a spiritual compass. Having to personally reconcile her faith with her identity as being gay, she knows and sees the struggles that families are going through. She believes that through a centered approach on love and understanding, we can work to empower one another to educate and bring about social justice in a peaceful manner.

Pioneers

11:00 AM to 12:15 PM, Hobble Creek

How our Society and Church view LGBTQI people has changed a lot over the last two decades, and is still changing, but members of the community dealt with very different attitudes prior to that. The actions of this Pioneers helped drive the change, yet also affects how they view the changes and try to adapt to them. This, in turn, affects how younger generations view the Pioneers? What challenges do older LGBTQI folks face in their lives and what can following generations learn from their hard-won experiences? Join us for a free-ranging discussion of the questions.

Location: Hobble CreekFacilitator: Olin Thomas

11:00 AM12:15 PM

Social Track

Location: Timpanogos Terrace

If you’re looking for a place to mingle, this area will be open throughout the conference to have a place to socialize.

Millennials

2:00 PM to 3:15 PM, Battle Creek

Mountains and molehills could best describe your journey as an LGBTQ+ Millennial. This group welcomes everyone born after 1980 and exists to help you build a network of friendships centered on loyalty, service, personal growth, and, best of all, FUN activities. Join us in this open discussion session as we talk about dating, sex, relationships, coming out, church activity, creating healthy friendships, and more.

Prepare

2:00 PM to 3:15 PM, Cascade A

The Prepare Group is sponsoring a conversation about faith, faith crisis and faith transition with Jana Spangler. Jana is a certified Integral Professional Coach. She specializes in helping people affected by faith transition: individuals, families, and couples. She’s well versed in various “faith development” models of scholars and theologians like James Fowler, Richard Rohr and Thomas Wirthlin McConkie, and is an ally of the LGBTQ Mormon community.

If you are interested in reflecting on your own “spiritual journey” as an LGBTQ person of faith, or as a straight/cis ally of the LGBTQ Mormon community, you are invited to come participate in what promises to be an amazing discussion!

Location: Cascade AFacilitator: John Gustav-Wrathall, Jana Spangler

LGBTQ Latter-day Saints who are believing and/or active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or desiring to explore activity in the Church.

2:00 PM3:15 PM

Harassment & Sexual Harassment Policy

Location: Hobble CreekFacilitator: Justis Tuia

2:00 PM3:15 PM

Social Track

Location: Timpanogos Terrace

If you’re looking for a place to mingle, this area will be open throughout the conference to have a place to socialize.

2:00 PM3:15 PM

Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention Training

Parents and Allies: LGBTQ Safe Sex Ed for Parents

2:00 PM to 3:15 PM, Ballroom A

Are you the mother, father, bishop, friend, neighbor, church member, sibling, relative, or advocate of an LGBTQ+ individual? LGBTQ+ people are our mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, co-workers, and friends. You have the opportunity to be an ally and a friend at home, school, church, and work. Allies are some of the most effective and powerful voices of the LGBTQ+ movement. In this session, we will network together to share ideas and ways to offer support through friendship, parties, activities, events, firesides, panel discussions and more! We will share personal success stories and the open format will allow you to ask questions, receive feedback, and understand how to best help those you love!

Location: Ballroom AFacilitator: Laura Skaggs Dulin

2:00 PM3:15 PM

Being Resilient

Location: Silver Creek

Debra Asper

Licensed Marriage Family Therapist

Debra is a Licensed Marriage Family Therapist and worked at Children’s Hospital focusing on assisting children and their families recover from various types of traumas with the use of CBT (Cognitive Behavior Therapy) and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). She also participated in research to identify variables that help children recover from their abuse.

Debra did her thesis project on how homophobia affects the developmental stages of the LGBTQ population and she continues to carve out a portion of her private practice to work specifically with the LGBTQ community.

Debra played college basketball at the University of Utah and still loves to be active and be competitive by being a member of the San Diego Rowing Club.
Debra Asper’s passion is to help her clients not take on “what you can’t be responsible for.” She is an engaging speaker who uses the training of her profession to teach how the brain processes rejection and then shares the skills and knowledge to resolve trauma.

We are thrilled to have Debra join us to speak and share her vast experience with her LGBTQ community.

Break

Trans/Non-Binary

3:30 PM to 4:45 PM, Silver Creek

Designed for non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals, this affinity group seeks to help individuals learn from each others’ experiences in these following areas: 1) Coming out to ourselves and others; 2) Managing body and gender dysphoria; 3) Finding peace and happiness on hard days; 4) Figuring out, if desired, how to navigate LDS theology beliefs in gender.

Location: Silver Creek

Bianca Cline

Cinematographer

Bianca Cline is mother to the best three kids in the world. She was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She served a mission in Spain and studied film and photography at BYU. She now works as a cinematographer shooting movies and commercials.

This session is for non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals only.

3:30 PM4:45 PM

Affirmation Finances

Location: Hobble CreekFacilitator: Ron Raynes, Paul Winward

3:30 PM4:45 PM

Social Track

Location: Timpanogos Terrace

If you’re looking for a place to mingle, this area will be open throughout the conference to have a place to socialize.

3:30 PM4:45 PM

Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention Training

Location: Ballroom BTrainers: Alyson Deussen, Debra Coe

3:30 PM4:45 PM

Removing Masks

Location: Ballroom A

Charlie Bird

BYU Cosmo the Cougar, 2016-2018

Charlie Bird was Cosmo the Cougar at Brigham Young University from 2016-2018. He received national acclaim for his multiple dance performances with the BYU Cougarettes. As Cosmo, he performed on stages across the country, including the ESPN College Football Awards and America’s Got Talent. The year 2017 was dubbed “Year of the Mascot” by NBC Sports in honor of Cosmo’s character and performance. Charlie was born and raised in Southwest Missouri, and served a 2-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Redlands, California. He graduated from BYU in 2018 with degrees in Global Supply Chain Management and Spanish Studies. Charlie is an active LBGTQ advocate and is involved with multiple nonprofit LGBTQ organizations across Utah. He currently resides in New York City where he works in Spanish translation, and logistics consulting.

Dinner

Registration

Choir Practice

Saturday Plenary: Evening of Affirmation

Location: Ballrooms A/B

Jairo Fernando González Díaz

Vice President of Affirmation

The family of Jairo Fernando González Díaz was among the first LDS converts in Colombia, hence the unusual trajectory of an active Mormon since boyhood in a conservative and Catholic society where Mormonism was barely known. The mission he served in different cities of Colombia, accentuated his leadership skills and his religious convictions.

His professional training included a professional degree from the Colombian Polytechnic, as well as the development of his expertise as an auditor in renowned law firms such as Price Waterhouse Coopers and Nexia International. In the latter, his performance included the assembly of a conceptual technical structure that is still in use today. In more recent times, he established himself as a Founding Partner of Infinity, an accounting and consulting firm that develops its activities in important companies in western Colombia and Ecuador.

Laurie Lee Hall

Senior Vice President of Affirmation

Laurie Lee Hall is the Senior Vice President of Affirmation. Not only does she create beautiful spaces within Affirmation, as a practicing architect she has created many of the beautiful and iconic spaces of the LDS Church.

Singer/Songwriter Mindy Gledhill powerfully captured the essence of Laurie Lee in one of her Facebook posts:

“Two of the most prized buildings in my city (the new MTC addition and the rebuilt Provo City Center Temple) should remind our community daily, that the contributions of transgender citizens bless us all.

Laurie Lee Hall, Chief architect of those buildings (and many other LDS temples) is a transgender woman who leads with graciousness and love. She is one example of many amazing transgender people whose contributions make our state a better place.

Let’s think about that when we send our kids off to the MTC on missions (where transgender kids are barred from serving), or see them get married in the temple (where trans people are not even allowed to enter, let alone get married).”

This will be a powerful evening where Laurie Lee will weave together her remarkable work of church building projects with life lessons of communication, grieving, and mindfulness. Most importantly we will leave the evening more empowered as we navigate the challenges and triumphs of living authentically.

Nathan Kitchen

Affirmation President

Elected as Affirmation President in 2018, Nathan Kitchen (he/him/his) grew up in Orem, Utah. When he was 15, he moved to Illinois and finished high school. He served a two-year mission in Alabama, where on a lonely Tuscaloosa country road, he had a tooth knocked out during a head-on collision. The dentist who saved his tooth was so cool that Nathan decided right then and there to become one himself. He received his BS from BYU Provo and a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from Southern Illinois University. After a residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, he moved to Arizona and opened his private practice in Mesa. Nathan is the proud father of five remarkable children who are the pride and joy of his life.

Dance

Movie Screening – The Falls: Covenant of Grace

9:00 PM to 11:00 PM, Ballrooms A/B

Movie screening and discussion of The Falls: Covenant of Grace. This third and final film of the Falls trilogy revisits former Mormon missionaries Chris and RJ, six years after they first fell in love and were disciplined for it, as they formulate a plan to be together at long last. Join us to watch the movie and a discussion afterward with the executive producer/producer, Marty Beaudet. Watch preview on YouTube.

Youth Track

8:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference. They’ll engage in discussions and hear from speakers that are age appropriate, put on a talent show for their peers, complete a service project, and more! The youth also rehearse to perform a musical number at one of the plenary sessions of the conference. We’re excited to continue to provide this safe and affirming environment for youth attending the International Conference.

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference.

Plenary

Location: Ballroom A/B

Stacey Harkey

Actor/Writer Previously on Studio C

Stacey was born and raised in the bold country of Texas. After mastering the English language he immigrated to Utah to attend Brigham Young University, earn a bachelors degree in Public Relations and start working as an actor/writer for the sketch comedy show, Studio C. He recently left Studio C and started a family friendly media network with his best friends. By the way, he just announced to the world in December 2018 that he’s gay and he won’t stop talking about it.

Social Track

Picnic

Youth Program

Youth ages 11-18 have their own, separate, program from the adult sessions of the conference. They’ll engage in discussions and hear from speakers that are age appropriate, put on a talent show for their peers, complete a service project, and more! The youth also rehearse to perform a musical number at one of the plenary sessions of the conference. We’re excited to continue to provide this safe and affirming environment for youth attending the International Conference.

Church Leaders

We invite leadership from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to participate in sessions developed especially for them to help them better understand and minister to LGBTQ members and their families. These sessions are free for church leaders to participate.

Meals

Meals are not included in your conference registration. There any many dining options near the conference center that you can choose from between or after conference sessions. Several affinity groups may be meeting together for meals and we’ll post that information once available. There will also be a free potluck social on Thursday evening prior to the conference and Sunday afternoon following the conference. Attendees can RSVP for these socials when registering.